The history and nobility of this the most famous domaine in Burgundy still merits its pre-eminence under the stewardship of Aubert de Vilaine. That said, Its position at the top of the Vosne pyramid is chaseed closely by neighbouring grands crus Comte Liger Belair’s La Romanée and the new female generation at Domaine Lamarche’s La Grande Rue. Any serious text on Burgundy will provide background on both the estate and individual wines. Currently yields are lower than previously, the average vine age is now high across all the wines and the viticulture is now essentially biodynamic (in practice if not in name), making for healthier soils than previously. The most distinctive features of the vinification are that there is little or no destemming and automatic punching down is carried out. All the wines see 100% new oak. Individual wines seem to have had slight ups and downs but when on form they all rate 5 stars. Montrachet apart, all are made in decent quantities by Burgundian standards, assuming, that is, you can afford them. The holdings are: La Romanée Conti (1.81 ha), La Tâche (6.06 ha), Richebourg (3.51 ha), Romanée-Saint-Vivant (5.28 ha), Echezeaux (4.67 ha), Grands-Echezeaux (3.53 ha) and the solitary white, Le Montrachet (0.68 ha). All the wines are £H. The first two are monopoles and are considered the brightest stars in the firmament, while the other reds account for a substantial proportion of the vineyard area of their respective appellations. A second selection, Cuvée Duvault-Blochet, sold as Vosne Romanée Premier Cru, has been produced in most years since 1999. (ME)
